Method and system for tracking goods

ABSTRACT

A method and system for tracking goods, etc., food products, which involves identifying the received goods at a specified location and thereafter assigning an encoded readable code to each of the goods which can be only accessed by authorized personnel responsible for handling the goods on through to and including shipment, e.g., to customers. A host computer includes a database for encoding received identification data and thereafter encoding same to provide the readable codes. The method and system also allows the customer/recipient to access the codes to discern whether he/she has received the correct goods he purchased.

TECHNICAL FIELD

This invention relates to the tracking of various goods such as foodproducts. More particularly, the inventions relates to a system andmethod for effectively tracking goods as part of a receiving anddistribution process such as where the goods are received within acommon location such as a warehouse and then shipped to designatedcustomer locations distant from the warehouse.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

In today's highly competitive commercial environment, it is imperativethat products reach the marketplace quickly and effectively. This isespecially important for products such as food products, particularlywhen such products are of the perishable variety. Given today'ssecurity-conscious environment, it is also imperative that such productsare assured safe and secure transport to the final destinations thereof,such that tampering and theft are effectively prevented. Finally, it isimperative that effective accountability of each product in thedistribution process occur, to assure that the end customer receives andpays for the correct goods he/she has purchased.

Although the invention defined above mentions food products, this is notmeant to limit the scope of the invention because the teachings hereinare equally applicable to receiving and distribution of all sorts ofgoods, including such goods as electronic packaging components (e.g.,printed circuit boards and cards, chip carriers, etc.), electroniccomponents (e.g., computers, servers, etc.), and a multitude of othersof many different sizes and shapes. As defined herein, the invention isalso applicable to effective receipt and distribution of both large andsmall quantities of such goods, and of goods of many different costlevels.

The ability to track the location and identity of quantities of goodsduring a storage and/or distribution process has presented a significantchallenge for both industry and science. For example, the demands ofkeeping track of consumer products, such as food products, jewelry, andthe like, and the strong interest in effective identification devices(perhaps the most classic today being credit/debit cards with personalphoto identification thereon), has led to the need for a secure,relatively fast, yet readily inexpensive to operate, tracking system.Additionally, emerging technologies such as combinatorial chemistry,genomics research, and microfluidics also require the ability toidentify and track the location of large numbers of items, especially inthe science industry and other industries shipping goods such aschemicals, powders, and the like.

One known method for tracking the location and/or identity of a good isthe utilization of Universal Product Code (UPC) technology, or, as alsoknown, “barcode” technology. As known, barcodes use a linear array ofelements that are either printed directly on goods or on labels that areaffixed to the goods. These barcode elements typically comprise bars andspaces, with bars of varying widths representing strings of binary“ones” and spaces of varying widths representing strings of binary“zeros”. Barcodes can be detectable optically using devices such asscanning laser beams or handheld wands, or these can be implemented inmagnetic media. The readers and scanning systems electro-opticallydecode the symbol to multiple alpha-numerical characters that areintended to be descriptive of the article or some characteristicthereof. Such characters are typically represented in digital form as aninput to a data processing system for applications such as inpoint-of-sale processing and inventory control, these latter two beingonly examples of many such applications.

Typically, traditional barcodes typically only contain five or sixletters or digits. However, two dimensional bar codes have also beendeveloped in which one-dimensional bar codes are stacked with horizontalguard bars between these to increase the information density. Forexample, U.S. Pat. No. 5,304,786 describes the use of a high densitytwo-dimensional bar code symbol for use in bar code applications.

Another technology that has been developed for labeling objects includesa composition comprising silicon or silicon dioxide microparticles and apowder, fluid or gas to be applied to goods such as vehicles, creditcards and jewelry (see WO 95/29437 for a description of such usage).This system typically allows the formation of several million particleson a single wafer, each of the particles on one wafer being designed tobe of identical shape and size so that when the particles are freed fromthe wafer substrate one is left with a suspension containing a singleparticle type which can thus be identified and associated with aparticular item (good).

In addition to the aforementioned bar coding and micro particle trackingschemes, emerging technologies such as combinatorial chemistry has alsoresulted in the development of various encoding schemes (See, forexample, Czamik, A. W., “Encoding Methods for Combinatorial Chemistry”,Curr. Opin. Chem. Biol., 1997, 1, 60). The need for this development hasarisen in part from the split and pool technique utilized incombinatorial chemistry to generate libraries on the order of onemillion compounds. Split and pool synthesis involves dividing acollection in beads into N groups, where N represents the number ofdifferent reagents being used in a particular reaction stage, and afterthe reaction is performed, pooling all of these groups together andrepeating the split and pool process until the desired reaction sequenceis completed. Clearly, in order to keep track of each of the compoundsproduced from a reaction series, the beads must be “tagged” or encodedwith information at each stage to enable identification of the compoundof interest or the reaction pathway producing the compound. The tagsused to encode the information, however, must be robust to theconditions being employed in the chemical synthesis and must be easilyidentifiable to obtain the information. Exemplary encoding techniquesthat have been developed include the use of chemically robust smallorganic molecules (“tags”) that are cleaved from the bead after thesynthesis is completed and analyzed using mass spectroscopy (see U.S.Pat. Nos. 5,565,324 and 5,721,099 for descriptions of this technology).

In yet another example, one of more recent vintage, radiofrequencyencoded combinatorial chemistry combines recent advances inmicroelectronics, sensors, and chemistry and uses a single or multipleaddressable radiofrequency tag semiconductor unit to record encoding andother relevant information along the synthetic pathway (Nicolaou et al,Angew. Chem. Int. Ed Engl. 1995, 34, 2289). Still another example ofon-bead decoding includes the use of colored and fluorescent beads(Egner et al., Chem. Commun. 1997, 735), in which a confocal microscopelaser system is used to obtain the fluorescence spectra of fluorescentdyes.

As understood from the following, the present invention provides a newand unique method and system for tracking goods, including those of theseveral different types mentioned hereinabove, and others, which can beoperated expeditiously at relatively low cost, and which assures safeand secure shipment such that a receiver of the desired goods will knowhe/she is receiving exactly the type and quantity of goods he/she hasrequested.

It is believed that such a method and system will constitute significantadvancements in the art.

OBJECTS AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is, therefore, a primary object of this invention to provide a newand unique tracking method and system which assures improvedaccountability and security for the goods being tracked.

It is another object of the invention to provide such a method andsystem which can each be operated expeditiously and at relatively lowcost.

It is still another object of this invention to provide such a methodand system which is capable of utilizing existing technologies such asthose described above, including particularly the use of barcodetechnology.

According to one aspect of the invention, there is provided a method oftracking goods, the method comprising receiving goods at a specifiedlocation, identifying each of the goods in accordance with a particularcharacteristic thereof at this specified location and thereafterproviding these characteristics for each of the identified goods to ahost database. The method further comprises encoding each of thesecharacteristics and producing a distinct encoded readable code for eachof the good, applying one of the distinct encoded readable codes to eachof the goods in accordance with a predetermined characteristic thereof,reading the distinct encoded readable codes of the goods and providingthese readings to the host database. The method further comprisesdistributing the goods having the distinct encoded readable codesthereon to selected recipients at selected locations located distantfrom the specified location.

According to another aspect of the invention, there is provided a systemfor tracking goods, the system comprising a specified location forreceiving the goods, a host computer having a database, apparatus foridentifying each of the goods in accordance with a particularcharacteristic thereof at this specified location and thereafterproviding these characteristics to the database of the host computer,apparatus for encoding each of the characteristics of the identifiedgoods and producing a distinct encoded readable code for each of thegoods to the host computer database. The system further includes anapplicator for applying one of the distinct encoded readable codes toeach of the goods in accordance with a predetermined characteristicthereof, apparatus for reading these distinct encoded readable codes ofthe goods and providing the readings to the host computer database, anddistributing means for distributing the goods having the distinctencoded readable codes thereon to selected recipients at selectedlocations located distant from the specified location.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING

The Drawing illustrates a system for tracking goods during a receivingand distribution process in accordance with one embodiment of theinvention. The method as defined herein is also readily discernible fromthe and will be described even more fully in the following description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

For a better understanding of the present invention, together with otherand further objects, advantages and capabilities thereof, reference ismade to the following disclosure and appended claims in connection withthe above-described. It is understood that like numerals will be used toindicate like elements from FIG. to FIG.

The present invention defines a method and system for quickly andefficiently tracking goods of many different types such that these goodsare properly received by a designated location such as a warehouse orthe like and thereafter correctly distributed (transported) todesignated recipients such as customers so that these customers areassured reception of the proper goods they purchased. A key aspect ofthis invention involves the assigning of encoded readable codes for thereceiving goods following identification thereof at receipt such thatonly authorized personnel will have access to such readable codes inorder to correctly discern the contents thereof. As explained, it isalso possible within the scope of this invention to allowrecipients/customers to have access to codes in order to be assured theyreceive the goods they ordered. The method and system is workable forall kinds of goods, from perishable food products to chemical and powdermaterials held in adequate containers. The invention uses knowntechnologies for the most part and is thus relatively easy to operateand relatively inexpensive to build and maintain. The invention isadaptable in an environment where the goods are received and thenshipped to the designated recipients or, alternatively, where the goodsare temporarily stored after receipt and before shipment. Effectivetracking from receipt to storage (optional) to shipment and finally tothe recipient is thus possible using the unique teachings of thisinvention.

As shown in the, the present system initially involves the receipt ofgoods from designated suppliers 11 (three shown in the) into thereceiving location (department or the like) of a specified location 15,one prime example being a warehouse facility or the like. The inventionis adapted for tracking and distributing received goods having alreadyprovided thereon appropriate indicia such as the aforementioned barcodes which identify the goods according to a particular characteristic.Examples of such particular characteristics include the type of goods,the number of goods (e.g., within a single container such as a box), theweight and/or total volume, etc. It is not necessary, however, accordingto the teachings herein that such goods be already identified in such amanner upon receipt. If such indicia is not provided, one of the initialsteps of the invention involves identifying these goods in accordancewith such characteristics for further providing such information to ahost computer database 17. To accomplish, the incoming goods arescanned, utilizing standard scanners, preferably of the hand-heldvariety. These scanners may read the bar codes if provided or beprogrammed to detect and read other characteristics such as mentionedabove. Such identification may also include weighing of the goods ifthis particular characteristic is desired (as it most likely will be).Thus, a combination of apparatus may be used to provide goodsidentification to assure the correct characteristics required. Afterobtaining these particular characteristics, as stated, these areprovided to the host computer database and retained there in accordancewith a program established for this purpose. Such a program is withinthe scope of those skilled in the art and further description is notbelieved necessary.

In addition to the goods characteristics, the information provided tothe database at this time may also include the identification of theperson or persons receiving the goods to thus assure greater securitythereof (e.g., to deter the opportunity for theft or to assureaccountability for subsequent misplacement).

The next step in tracking the goods is a very important one, andinvolves the encryption (encoding) of the identification information inthe database and thereafter providing a unique, encoded readable codefor each of the goods received. This encryption and code provision maybe accomplished utilizing conventional software or through utilizationof a developed program, which may be developed utilizing skills known inthe art. The encoded information is also stored within the computerdatabase 17 for future reference and possible modification (if desired).

As mentioned above, the invention is adaptable for use in a warehouse orthe like situation in which storage is possible or, alternatively, wheresubsequent distribution (shipping) of the goods is desired without suchstorage. The Drawing illustrates both possibilities, showing the goodsas being directly moved (e.g., using a forklift truck) to suitablestorage (e.g., shelving or the like), or directly to a shipping location(department) for subsequent shipping (distribution) to designatedrecipients 19. In the case of perishable items such as certain foodproducts, it may be desirable to immediately ship these goods ratherthan store same, but it is also within the scope of the invention toprovide such storage (e.g., in suitable cold storage such as freezers).In either case, before moving from the receiving location, the goods areprovided with the encrypted bar code label (having the encoded readablecode), preferably being manually applied by a human receiver uponreceiving these codes from the host computer. It is also within thescope of the invention to utilize mechanical or other applicationapparatus to accomplish this in a more automated fashion, e.g., as thegoods pass down a conveyor system. The latter would be preferred ifsimilar goods are received, while the use of a human applicator ispreferred for goods of various types, sizes, volumes, etc.

If the goods are to be stored, each of the storage shelves include aunique identification bar code attached thereto such that when aparticular good is stored thereon, this unique identification bar code,together with the encrypted bar code on the respective goods (and,again, possibly the identification of the person handling these goods)is transmitted to the host computer for corresponding database updating.The precise location of any one set of goods within the warehouse isthus readily discernible by accessing the database, e.g., from a monitoror the like at an appropriate location within the warehouse storagelocation. Hand-held monitors are also usable for this purpose. It isunderstood that if the goods are shipped directly from the receivinglocation to shipping, they will only contain the encoded readable codesthereon, including, again, the possible identification of the respectivehandler transporting these goods.

In order to fill an order for goods held in storage, the order fillerwill determine the location of the goods according to the informationprovided by the host computer and transport these to the shippinglocation, also sending the host computer his own biometric data(identification) if required. The host computer now knows the personhandling the goods, and all important characteristics thereof such asquantity, type, weight, volume, etc. Once the goods reach the shippinglocation, receivers at the location also input their own biometric datato the host computer, along with the goods data. The computer now knowsthat the goods are no longer in storage but awaiting shipment When thegoods are placed on the selected means of transportation (e.g., atruck), the encoded readable codes of each are scanned once again, andother identification (that of the trucker) is forwarded to the hostcomputer. In the figure, this is shown as “shipping data”. It is alsowithin the scope of this invention that the shipper have his/her ownaccess to the host computer database to be assured that he/she isreceiving the precise quantity and type of goods he/she is nowresponsible for transporting. Once confirmation is attained, shipment(distribution) is now possible.

The Drawing indicates that air, land or sea transportation is possiblefor the goods now including the designated shipping data. Examples areairplane, truck and ship, respectively. The invention is readilyadaptable for all such means of transportation. The invention is notlimited to just these three particular elements (airplane, truck orship) as others are possible (e.g., railroad cars).

To assure still further precise tracking of these goods, it is alsowithin the scope of the invention to provide a generated bar code forthe transporting vehicle such that this may also be scanned or otherwiseread at designated locations distant from the warehouse to assure properand timely distribution in accordance with the most efficient channels.For example, a bar code scanner could be positioned at a specifiedlocation distant from the warehouse to assure that a particular vehicle(e.g., a truck) passed thereby within an appropriate time period fromdeparture, thus also assuring that the vehicle is on the correct andmost efficient route to the ultimate recipient. Should deviations fromthese desired readings occur, corrective action may be promptly taken,including contacting the transporter (if possible) or appropriate lawenforcement agencies (should theft be deemed possible).

Once the goods are distributed to the respective recipients 19, it iswithin the scope of the invention to provide each of these recipientswith access to the host computer database, and particularly theinformation therein pertaining to the shipped orders. In the Drawing,access is shown (in dotted line) between the shipping department andrecipient and this is understood to mean that the recipient is accessinginformation at the shipping department which in turn has received theappropriate information from the host computer database. It is alsowithin the scope of the invention to have the recipients directly accessthe database, this perhaps being a more efficient means should it not bedesirable to involve shipping personnel or the like and there areappropriate personnel serving the host database capable of doing so.Each recipient will thus access information obtaining the necessarycoded information for the goods, and the biometric identificationinformation of the respective transporter who brought the goods to therecipient's location. This thus assures that the correct transporter istransporting the goods in question and that the goods are identical tothose which left the shipping department destined for said recipient.This is especially important for security reasons, e.g., to assuretampering or theft has not occurred. The goods in such a situation arepreferably locked within the transporting apparatus and can providefurther means of protection in addition to the unique teachings of theinstant invention.

In an alternative embodiment, it is possible to provide a more enhancedmeans of assuring positive tracking of the respective goods through theprocess. An example of such enhanced tracking is the use of radiofrequency identification. If used, appropriate radio frequencyidentifiable codes would form the encoded readable codes and secured toeach of the goods being tracked. Thus, a radio frequency tag could beattached to the goods at receipt and subsequently used throughout thesystem, including having this tag updated with the aforementionedinformation at various parts of the process. Reading of the respectivetags can be accomplished by a human being wearing a portable computerwith voice command capabilities along with a low power radio frequencyreader. The human user can update the tag (preferably including a logicchip as part thereof) with his/her own biometric information, the chosenstorage shelf location, etc. The tag can also be updated with theshipping department information and that of the chosen carrier. The useof radio frequency tags and associated hardware (e.g., satellite andcell phone connections) is desirable due to the enhanced capabilities ofsuch advanced technologies. Each radio frequency tag could be inrelatively simple “button” form and pressed onto or pinned into thegoods, a container having a specified quantity of such goods therein,etc. The tag would also preferably include its own antenna for receivinginformation as necessary to effectively operate the process, such asinformation from a satellite or the like. Such information could includeglobal positioning information such that both shipper and recipient(customer) can quickly ascertain the precise location of respectivegoods at any time, night or day.

The invention as defined herein provides for the quick and efficienttracking of goods of many different types such that these goods arecorrectly stored (if desired) and distributed to designated recipientssuch as purchasing customers. The system assures that by use of itsencoded readable codes that theft, tampering, misplacement, etc., aresubstantially eliminated. Further, the invention as defined herein uses,for the most part, known technologies (e.g., bar code readers) and isthus relatively inexpensive to build, operate and maintain.

While there have been shown and described what are at present thepreferred embodiments of the invention, it will be obvious to thoseskilled in the art that various changes and modifications may be madetherein without departing from the scope of the invention as defined bythe appended claims.

1. A method of tracking goods, said method comprising: receiving goodsat a specified location; identifying each of said goods in accordancewith a particular characteristic thereof at said specified location andthereafter providing said characteristics for each of said identifiedgoods to a host database; encoding each of said characteristics of saididentified goods and producing a distinct encoded readable code for eachof said goods; applying one of said distinct encoded readable codes toeach of said goods in accordance with a predetermined characteristicthereof; reading said distinct encoded readable codes of said goods andproviding said readings to said host database; and distributing saidgoods having said distinct encoded readable codes thereon to selectedrecipients at selected locations located distant from said specifiedlocation.
 2. The method of claim 1 wherein said encoded readable codesare barcodes.
 3. The method of claim 1 wherein said encoded readablecodes are radio frequency identifiable codes.
 4. The method of claim 1further including providing each of said selected recipients with itsown reading apparatus such that said recipients can access said hostdatabase upon receipt of said goods having said distinct encodedreadable codes to assure proper receipt of said goods.
 5. The method ofclaim 4 further including storing said goods having said distinctencoded readable codes at said specified location prior to saiddistributing thereof to said selected recipients.
 6. The method of claim5 further including providing a readable identification code at each ofsaid separate storage locations within said specified location wheresaid goods are stored and storing said goods having said distinctencoded readable codes at each at said separate storage locations so asto associate each of said stored goods with a respective one of saidseparate storage locations.
 7. The method of claim 6 further includingretrieving selected ones of said goods at selected ones of said separatestorage locations and thereafter transporting said goods to adistribution location at said specified location for accomplishing saiddistributing of said goods to said selected ones of said recipients. 8.The method of claim 4 wherein each of said distinct encoded readablecodes include information relating to the type and quantity of saidgoods and the party transporting said goods.
 9. A system for trackinggoods, said system comprising: a specified location for receiving saidgoods; a host computer having a database; apparatus for identifying eachof said goods in accordance with a particular characteristic thereof atsaid specified location and thereafter providing said characteristicsfor each of said identified goods to said database of said hostcomputer; apparatus for encoding each of said characteristics of saididentified goods and producing a distinct encoded readable code for eachof said goods to said database of said host computer; an applicator forapplying one of said distinct encoded readable codes to each of saidgoods in accordance with a predetermined characteristic thereof;apparatus for reading said distinct encoded readable codes of said goodsand providing said readings to said host database; and distributingmeans for distributing said goods having said distinct encoded readablecodes thereon to selected recipients at selected locations locateddistant from said specified location.
 10. The system of claim 9 whereinsaid specified location is a warehouse facility.
 11. The system of claim9 wherein said apparatus for identifying each of said goods inaccordance with a particular characteristic thereof at said specifiedlocation and thereafter providing said characteristics for each of saididentified goods to said database of said host computer is a scanner.12. The system of claim 9 wherein said applicator is a human being, saidhuman being manually applying each of said distinct encoded readablecodes to each of said goods in accordance with said predeterminedcharacteristic thereof.
 13. The system of claim 9 wherein said apparatusfor reading said distinct encoded readable codes of said goods andproviding said readings to said host database is a scanner.
 14. Thesystem of claim 9 wherein said distributing means for distributing saidgoods having said distinct encoded readable codes thereon to selectedrecipients at selected locations located distant from said specifiedlocation is selected from the group consisting of air, sea and groundtransportation apparatus.
 15. The system of claim 9 further includingstorage apparatus for storing said goods having said distinct encodedreadable codes at said specified location prior to said distributingthereof to said selected recipients.
 16. The system of claim 15 whereinsaid storage apparatus comprises storage shelving.
 17. The system ofclaim 15 further including a second applicator for providing a readableidentification code at each of said separate storage locations withinsaid specified location where said goods are stored and storing saidgoods having said distinct encoded readable codes at each at saidseparate storage locations so as to associate each of said stored goodswith a respective one of said separate storage locations.
 18. The systemof claim 17 wherein said second applicator is a human being and saidproviding of said readable identification code is accomplished manually.19. The system of claim 17 further including retriever apparatus foraccomplishing said retrieving of said selected ones of said goods atsaid selected ones of said separate storage locations and thereaftertransporting said goods to a distribution location at said specifiedlocation for accomplishing said distributing of said goods to saidselected ones of said recipients.
 20. The system of claim 19 whereinsaid retriever apparatus is a forklift truck.